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Officer On Patrol December 2005

Deer Will Be Shot-St. Lawrence County

During the Northern Zone big game season, ECOs Crosbie and Malone investigated a complaint of feeding and baiting deer at a hunting camp in Pierrepont. They found a bait pile near a tree stand and an area near the camp covered with corn and apples. A large salt block was also found near the camp. It appeared to be a perfect setup for the owner to shoot a deer right from the front door of the camp.

The camp owner's intentions became apparent when the ECOs read a sign posted near the feed pile. The sign read: "Corn and apples are for squirrels and rabbits only. Deer will be shot!"

The camp owner was charged with violating regulations against feeding deer, and with placing a salt block on land inhabited by deer.

Over the Limit-Niagara County

During the fall salmon run, ECOs Rogers and Hunt were patrolling the Burt Dam area of Eighteen Mile Creek, a Lake Ontario tributary. An upset fisherman reported that a fisherman near him on the creek had been snatching salmon, ripping out their gills, and possibly keeping over his limit.

With a description of the alleged poacher in hand, ECO Rogers went undercover with a fishing rod to the section of the creek where the reported illegal activity was taking place. He soon spotted a fisherman, matching the description of the suspect, retrieve a stringer of three salmon and bring them to his car in the parking area. The angler returned to the creek and resumed fishing. ECO Rogers watched the man catch another salmon, pull out its gills, and discard them on the stream bank. The fisherman's companion was also observed catching salmon and putting them on a stringer.

Identifying himself as an ECO, Rogers escorted the suspects to their car, where they were joined by ECO Hunt and K-9 Matz. The officers discovered that there were already six freshly caught salmon in the vehicle. The violators were charged with taking more than the daily limit of salmon, and a violation of the fish carcass disposal law.

Exotic Crimes-New York City

A Division of Law Enforcement undercover investigation of an individual known as "Mr. Anything Man" advertising exotic live animals and other articles on the internet led to his arrest in a buy-and-bust operation in Brooklyn. The individual sold a jacket and handbag made from the skin of the federally threatened Nile crocodile species to a DEC undercover investigator for $4,500. "Anything Man" pled guilty to misdemeanor-level illegal commercialization of wildlife in Brooklyn Criminal Court. He was sentenced to pay a $5,000 fine and ordered to forfeit the jacket and bag.

Ask the ECO

Q: If I wound a deer and it runs onto posted property, can I track the deer onto that posted property in order to dispatch it?

A: Only if you have the permission of the property owner. Wounding a deer that travels onto posted property does not give a hunter any special rights. Posting makes it illegal to enter that property without the owner's permission. Most landowners understand that pursuing a wounded animal is the humane and ethical thing to do, and are generally willing to provide permission to hunters for that purpose. Always ask first.
- Lt. Ken Didion

Real stories from officers in the field
Compiled by Bob Lucas
Director of Law Enforcement

- This article was taken from the Conservationist, December 2005 Issue